I have been brewing since mid December and have done fairly well. I have switched to AG but a few weeks ago a friend gave me a Irish Stout kit, that is a extract kit with a special grain step, to make. I followed the instructions completely. I got it to the 5 gallon mark the OG was 1.035 ( kind of low to what im use too). The instrutions said to just sprinkle the yeast on top and stir, so I did.. First and second day it bubbled slowly but steadly. the third day it stopped. The fith day i decided to take the lid off and do a temp check to see if maybe it was to cold but it was still at the 75 degrees that the instrutions told me to be at. I took a hydrometer read and it was 1.020. I put the lid back on and decided to let it sit some more. There has not been any airlock activity. Today I took another read and it has not changed 75 temp and 1.020. I have brewed several batches now but this is the first one that I have had trouble out of. Any advice? Is it done? Time to bottle? kind of low ABV for a stout.
Irish stout kit
- Thread starter Latamir
- Start date
Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:
jmprdood
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Nov 5, 2011
- Messages
- 585
- Reaction score
- 22
1.035 is kinda low - did you steep the grains instead of a mash? Might not have gotten full conversion of the grain and that could be why you're about .010 or .005 low on OG. Extract kits are known to hang up at about 1.020. If it is steady over several days it can be bottled.
How long has it been in primary? 75F is a bit too warm for an ale,The yeast may've gotten stressed & quit. Let it cool down gradually,& swirl up some yeast back into suspension.
I steeped as per the instrutions. For the temp that is what the instructions call for. its been in the primary since Feb 5 at 130 pm. I did try to swirl the yeast back up a few days ago but still nothing.
Feb 5 was brew date. Feb 8 it steem to stop fermenting. Feb 9 took temp and hydro readings and stired in hopes of restarting yeast. Today cleared back up and readings the same... I try to keep the best notes I can. Like I said I have had several batched but this is the first to mess up on me.
I've found that airlock activity slows down or stops when initial fermentation is over. It then slowly,unevetfully ferments down to FG. Maybe the specialty grains added more unfermentables that helped keep the FG a bit high?
What was the expected OG of that extract kit? You almost certainly hit that but didn't get enough mixing and took you hydrometer reading of the lower SG wort.
Ale yeasts go like crazy while there is lots of sugars and they expel CO2 while doing so which makes the airlock bubble. When the easy sugars are gone they slow down and consume other products of fermentation that give off no CO2 and new brewers get excited because the fermentation quit. It didn't quit but it slowed down.
A stout recipe will have dark grains in it (duh!) and these dark grains have unfermentable sugars so quite often the final gravity will be higher, especially with extract where the maltster controls what goes into the extract. Finishing at 1.020 isn't uncommon. That said, extra time in the fermenter may lower it a bit and if it doesn't, the extra time will be beneficial anyway as bulk aging. At the end of 3 weeks I would bottle that and not worry much about it.
Ale yeasts go like crazy while there is lots of sugars and they expel CO2 while doing so which makes the airlock bubble. When the easy sugars are gone they slow down and consume other products of fermentation that give off no CO2 and new brewers get excited because the fermentation quit. It didn't quit but it slowed down.
A stout recipe will have dark grains in it (duh!) and these dark grains have unfermentable sugars so quite often the final gravity will be higher, especially with extract where the maltster controls what goes into the extract. Finishing at 1.020 isn't uncommon. That said, extra time in the fermenter may lower it a bit and if it doesn't, the extra time will be beneficial anyway as bulk aging. At the end of 3 weeks I would bottle that and not worry much about it.
The instructions that came with the kit had no detail on what the OG was suppost to be. I guess that is my biggest problem with this kit, there is no detail of where my targets are suppose to be.
I did try to stir up the yeast as stated earlyer in the thread, but they didnt kick back off. Also as I had stated before the yeast never went crazy like I am use to with my AG brews, it was slow but steady. As for stiring I have a stainless steel paddle that hooks to a drill that I use. A few mins with that and it should be mixed.
This will be my last kit. AG for the win...lol
I did try to stir up the yeast as stated earlyer in the thread, but they didnt kick back off. Also as I had stated before the yeast never went crazy like I am use to with my AG brews, it was slow but steady. As for stiring I have a stainless steel paddle that hooks to a drill that I use. A few mins with that and it should be mixed.
This will be my last kit. AG for the win...lol
JoshuaW
Well-Known Member
Was it the Brewer's Best kit? I just tried one out, and mine stopped a little higher than I am used to, but not as high as yours (around 1.002) my OG was higher though, something around 1.054. I did notice that fermentation seemed to stall out around day 4 or 5, but it picked up for another day after I transferred it to secondary. I gave that about a week and a half, then transferred to the keg for aging. It aged in the keg for a week, but was still a little green, so I left it for another 4 days. I tried some the other day, coming along nicely! It should turn out great.
The kit was from The Home Brewery in Fayetteville, Ar. My first brew was a kit from them but it didnt have specialty grains, but the instructions had no target spec s like OG, FG, or ABV. After my first kit I went to AG which lets me figure out my own target areas.
Like I said a friend gave this new kit to me and I kind of brewed it as a favor, but I will never use a kit again.
Anyway thanx guys for the input. Ill bottle it Friday. Then Sunday I have 2 brews planned 1. Wheat 2. mead. Wish me luck..lol
Like I said a friend gave this new kit to me and I kind of brewed it as a favor, but I will never use a kit again.
Anyway thanx guys for the input. Ill bottle it Friday. Then Sunday I have 2 brews planned 1. Wheat 2. mead. Wish me luck..lol
Just an up date on this issue I have had. Like I said
1. A friend gave it to me
2. I followed the instructions. It did not ferment out all the way
3. I want ahead and primed and bottled..
4. Now there is no carbination in any of the bottles. Beer taste right just flat...
No more kits AG for the win.
1. A friend gave it to me
2. I followed the instructions. It did not ferment out all the way
3. I want ahead and primed and bottled..
4. Now there is no carbination in any of the bottles. Beer taste right just flat...
No more kits AG for the win.
